Friday, April 16, 2010

UN rejects defence of treaty vote - Surrey Leader

The United Nations still has doubts about the way the Tsawwassen First Nation (TFN) treaty was reached, despite a Government of Canada assurance that $15,000 payments to some members were not made to buy support.

A just-released letter from the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) in Geneva to the Canadian ambassador says the treaty vote "...may have been subject to processes that did not meet standards for fair elections, in particular in light of allegations of financial inducements and other non-transparent processes used to influence election outcomes."

CRED recommends that "...increased efforts be taken to ensure fair and transparent voting procedures and monitoring of a future vote on an agreement."